GIFT  OF 


DEPARTMENT  OF  THE  INTERIOR 

BUREAU  OF  EDUCATION 


BULLETIN,  1920,  No.  23 


A  SCHOOL  BUILDING  PROGRAM 

FOR 

GLOUCESTER,  MASS. 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 
1920 


ADDITIONAL  COPIES 

OF  THIS  PUBLICATION  MAY  BE  PROCURED  FROM 

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AT 

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GIFT 


A  SCHOOL  BUILDING  PROGRAM  FOR 
MASSACHUSETTS. 


Years  ago  the  city  of  Gloucester  gave  its  children  the  kind  of  edu- 
cation which  made  them  strong,  healthy,  self-reliant,  resourceful,  and 
industrious.  Some  of  the  schools  built  in  those  days  are  still  standing. 
But  the  children  of  50  years  ago  did  not  receive  their  education  only  in 
these  school  buildings ;  in  fact,  they  received  only  a  very  small  part  of 
it  there.  They  received  their  health  and  strength  from  the  work  that 
they  did  about  the  home  and  in  helping  in  their  father's  business  of 
fishing  or  farming.  In  doing  this  work  they  had  the  chance  to  test 
their  ingenuity  and  resourcefulness  in  overcoming  obstacles;  they 
learned  to  handle  tools,  to  invent  new  ways  of  doing  things.  There- 
fore, itTmattered  little  that  the  school  was  nothing  but  a  collection  of 
seats  where  the  children  could  study  the  three  R's.  Two-thirds  of 
their  education — in  work  and  play — they  received  outside  the  school. 
There  is  such  a  common  tendency  to  identify  "  schools  "  with  "  educa- 
tion" that  it  is  necessary  to  emphasize  the  fact  that  education  has 
always  consisted  of  work  and  study  and  play,  and  that  children  must 
not  be  deprived  of  any  of  these  three  elements  in  their  education  if 
they  are  to  grow  in  health  and  strength,  and  develop  initiative,  intelli- 
gence, and  the  ability  to  think  for  themselves. 

Fifty  years  ago  the  environment  of  the  average  boy  and  girl  in 
Gloucester  furnished  an  education  in  wholesome  activities  that  devel- 
oped intelligence,  initiative,  and  industrious  habits.  Moreover,  their 
education  was  real  and  vital,  because  it  was  necessary  in  the  life  of  the 
community.  In  those  days  each  man  owned  his  own  boat  or  his  own 
fa  rm  or  homestead.  He  worked  for  himself  and  had  the  interest  and 
initiative  that  came  from  that  independence.  The  effect  on  the  chil- 
dren of  growing  up  in  a  community  where  every  man  was  his  own 
master,  where  everyone  had  an  equal  chance,  can  hardly  be  overesti- 
mated. 

CHANGED  SOCIAL  AND  INDUSTRIAL  CONDITIONS  DEMAND 
CHANGES  IN  EDUCATION. 

But  in  the  past  50  years  conditions  have  changed  greatly.  For 
example,  fishing  is  still  the  main  industry  of  Gloucester,  but  it  is  no 
longer  carried  on  by  a  group  of  skippers  each  of  whom  owns  his  own 

8274°— 20  3 

"48740 


SCHOOL  BUILDING  PROGRAM  FOR  GLOUCESTER,  MASS. 

boat.  On  the  contrary,  the  industry  is  largely  in  the  hands  of  one  or 
two  corporations,  which  control  not  only  the  fishing  industry  but 
allied  industries,  such  as  repairing  of  boats,  painting,  sails,  ropes,  etc. 
Boys  do  not  grow  up  now  with  the  thought  of  some  day  owning  their 
own-  boats,  of  belonging  to  that  fleet  of  daring  Gloucester  fishermen 
v;hone  exploits  have  been  made  famous  in  song  and  story.  Fishing 
is  an  u  industry 3?  now,  not  an  occupation.  Moreover,  where  formerly 
the  countryside  from  Eastern  Point  to  Annisquam  and  Lanes ville 
was  dotted  with  small  holdings  owned  by  those  who  worked  them, 
now  "  summer  visitors  "  have  swarmed  over  the  whole  beautiful  coast, 
buying  up  land,  putting  up  cottages,  and  developing  summer  places 
which  lie  idle  three-fourths  of  the  year.  These  summer  visitors  bring 
money  to  Gloucester  to  such  an  extent  that  it  is  doubtless  possible 
now  for  the  permanent  inhabitants  to  earn  more  during  the  three 
months  of  summer  than  they  did  formerly  during  the  whole  year. 
That  means  that  independent  farming  has  not  grown ;  on  the  contrary, 
looking  after  the  summer  people's  estates,  i.  e.,  tenant  farming,  has 
grown. 

Whatever  may  be  said  of  the  desirability  of  this  from  the  point  of 
view  of  the  adults,  there  can  be  no  question  but  that  educationally 
it  is  undesirable  in  its  effects  on  the  children.  Not  only  do  they  not 
get  the  wholesome  effects  of  the  simpler  life  of  the  earlier  days,  but 
also  they  can  not  help  being  influenced  in  their  ideals,  standards  of 
living,  and  general  attitude  toward  life  by  the  great  mass  of  summer 
visitors  who  are  in  their  midst  three  or  four  months  yearly,  bent  solely 
on  pleasure,  living  in  but  not  working  in  Gloucester. 

FORTY-SIX  PER  CENT  OF  FATHERS  OF  PUBLIC-SCHOOL  CHILDREN 

ARE  FOREIGN-BORN. 

Furthermore,  another  change  that  has  taken  place  is  that  whereas 
formerly  a  very  large  majority  of  the  people  in  Gloucester  were 
native-born,  now  46.6  per  cent  of  the  fathers  of  public-school  children 
are  foreign-born;  19  countries  are  represented — Canada,  Denmark, 
England,  Finland,  France,  Germany,  Greece,  Holland,  Iceland,  Ire- 
land, Italy,  Newfoundland,  Norway,  Nova  Scotia,  Portugal,  Russia, 
Scotland,  Spain,  Sweden.  From  the  standpoint  of  the  school,  this 
means  that  the  educational  problem  is  far  more  difficult  than  formerly. 
It  means  that  the  school  must  now  not  only  teach  the  three  E's,  but,  to 
use  a  much  overworked  term,  it  must  really  be  the  "melting  pot" 
of  all  these  diverse  elements.  It  must  be  a  social  agency  in  the  com- 
munity where  all  elements  may  meet  on  a  common  footing.  It  must 
be  a  school  where  the  children  may  have  the  opportunity  to  develop 
the  particular  gifts  which  all  these  different  nationalities  bring  to 
America. 


SCHOOL  BUILDING  PROGRAM  FOR  GLOUCESTER,  MASS.  5 

To  sum  up,  although  Gloucester  is  a  small  town  of  only  a  few 
thousand  inhabitants,  yet  from  an  educational  standpoint  it  is  con- 
fronted with  the  same  problems  which  are  found  in  school  systems  in 
the  average  city,  i.  e.,  the  gradual  elimination  of  opportunities  for 
healthful  work  and  play  outside  the  school  and  the  substitution  of 
city  habits  and  ideals  of  life  for  the  simpler  and  more  wholesome 
ideals  of  a  hardy,  self-supporting  and  self-sustaining  community. 
In  the  second  place,  like  the  larger  city,  it  has  the  problems  which 
arise  from  the  increase  of  the  number  of  children  of  foreign-born 
parents. 

THE  MODERN  SCHOOL  MUST  PROVIDE  OPPORTUNITIES  FOR 
WORK  AND  PLAY. 

Because  of  these  conditions,  there  has  come  to  be  a  realization  of 
the  fact  that  the  city  school  must  not  only  supply  the  opportunity 
for  studying  in  good  classrooms,  under  wholesome  conditions,  but  it 
must  also  return  to  the  children  the  opportunities  for  work  and  play 
which  the  home  can  no  longer  supply,  and  which  are  necessary  for 
education  and  to  counteract  the  undesirable  aspects  of  city  life. 

It  must  provide  playgrounds  where  children  may  have  a  chance 
to  play;  and  shops,  laboratories,  drawing  and  music  rooms  where 
they  may  be  kept  wholesomely  occupied  when  not  engaged  in  other 
school  work  or  at  play.  Moreover,  it  should  be  remembered  that  if 
the  modern  city  makes  it  necessary  for  the  school  to  provide  play- 
grounds and  shops  and  science  laboratories  for  American  children, 
it  is  even  more  important  that  these  facilities  be  given  to  the  children 
of  the  foreign-born.  The  crowded  conditions  under  which  they  live 
as  a  general  rule  are  such  that  public  playgrounds  and  playground 
supervision  are  an  absolute  essential,  if  they  are  to  get  the  wholesome 
recreation  necessary  for  every  growing  child.  Again,  because  of  the 
precarious  economic  condition  of  the  average  wage  earner,  their  chil- 
dren have  practically  no  chance  outside  of  school  to  develop  their 
talents  in  handwork  or  music,  or  drawing  or  science — talents  which 
every  child  should  have  a  chance  to  develop.  It  is  said  that  America 
is  the  land  of  equal  opportunity  in  education,  but  this  does  not 
mean  opportunity  for  uniform  education,  but  opportunity  for  the 
development  of  the  varied  gifts  of  many  individuals.  Democratic 
education  means  variety  of  opportunity  in  accordance  with  the 
needs  of  the  individual.  If  Gloucester  does  not  give  this  variety 
of  opportunity  in  work  and  study  and  play  to  the  children  of  all 
its  people,  then  it  is  failing  to  tap  the  reservoirs  of  power  for  its 
coming  citizenship.  Moreover,  it  is  laying  up  trouble  for  itself 
in  the  future,  for  nothing  is  more  serious  to  any  community  than 


6  SCHOOL  BUILDING  PROGRAM  FOR  GLOUCESTER,  MASS. 

to  have  the  great  mass  of  people  feel  balked  in  their  power  of  self- 
expression  and  attainment. 

THE  SCHOOL  BUILDINGS  OF  GLOUCESTER. 

How  is  Gloucester  fulfilling  the  needs  of  such  a  modern  school 
system  ? 

In  the  first  place,  with  the  exception  of  the  Eastern  Avenue  School, 
not  a  single  new  elementary  school  building  has  been  erected  for  21 
years.  More  than  half  the  schools  were  built  half  a  century  ago. 
One-third  of  the  schools  were  built  nearly  TO  years  ago  and  one  nearly 
100  years  ago.  In  other  words,  for  a  quarter  to  half  a  century 
Gloucester  has  done  little  in  the  way  of  giving  her  children  richer 
school  facilities.  The  buildings  erected  so  long  ago  are  absolutely 
lacking  in  all  modern  facilities.  There  are  22  elementary-school 
buildings,  but  not  one  has  a  regular  auditorium,  none  has  a  well- 
equipped  gymnasium,  and  there  are  only  two  shops  and  one  sewing 
room  in  the  22  schools.  Furthermore,  no  school  has  adequate  play- 
ground space.  In  fact  the  lack  of  playground  space  in  the  city  of 
Gloucester  is  shocking.  There  is  no  playground  except  Stage  Fort 
Park,  and  that  is  too  far  out  of  town  for  all  the  children  to  use.  The 
people  of  Gloucester  need  to  realize  that  it  is  absolutely  essential  that 
every  school  have  playgrounds  sufficiently  large  for  ever}7  child  to 
have  at  least  40  square  feet  of  play  space,  and  it  is  necessary  that 
the  playground  should  be  where  the  children  can  use  it — not  at  the 
extreme  edge  of  town. 

A  COMPREHENSIVE  BUILDING  PROGRAM  NECESSARY  FOR 
GLOUCESTER. 

It  is  obvious,  then,  from  the  foregoing  facts  that  Gloucester  must 
enter  upon  a  building  program  which  will  make  up  for  time  lost 
during  the  past  25  to  50  years,  in  which  practically  nothing  has  been 
done  to  keep  the  school  buildings  abreast  of  the  times;  and  it  must 
also  provide  for  the  future.  No  temporary  patchwork  will  meet  the 
situation. 

In  order  to  work  out  such  a  program  it  is  necessary  that  Gloucester 
obtain  answers  to  the  following  questions : 

What  has  been  the  rate  of  increase  in  the  school  population  over  a  period  of 

years? 

Is  this  increase  likely  to  remain  constant  or  to  become  less  or  greater? 
Where  is  the  congestion  greatest? 
In  what  direction  is  the  tide  of  population  moving? 
What  is  the  present  condition  of  the  school  buildings?    Which  ones  should 

be  abandoned?     For  what  ones  should  additions  be  erected? 
How  much  playground  space  is  needed? 


SCHOOL  BUILDING  PROGRAM   FOR  GLOUCESTER,   MASS.  7 

In  order  to  eliminate  present  congestion  and  also  provide  for  future  growth, 
how  many  and  what  kind  of  new  buildings  should  be  erected,  and  in  what 
parts  of  the  city;  and  to  what  extent  can  present  congestion  be  relieved  by 
reorganization  of  existing  schools? 

What:  appropriation  is  necessary  to  carry  out  a  comprehensive  building 
program? 

RATE  OF  INCREASE  IN  THE  SCHOOL  POPULATION. 

In  1913-14  there  were  4,655  children  enrolled  in  the  public  schools 
of  Gloucester;  in  1917-18  there  were  4,680,  an  increase  of  only  25 
pupils,  and  this  increase  is  found  in  the  high  school  only.  In  the 
elementary  schools  (excluding  the  outlying  schools — Bray,  Haskell, 
Blymnan,  and  Parsons)  there  has  been  an  actual  decrease  of  97  pupils 
in  the  last  four  years.  Therefore,  evidently  school  congestion  is  not 
the  problem  to  be  solved  in  a  building  program  for  Gloucester.  The 
important  point  is  that  the  existing  buildings,  although  not  crowded, 
are  old,  inadequate,  and  utterly  devoid  of  all  modern  school  facili- 
ties, such  as  auditoriums,  shops,  and  laboratories. 

Moreover,  in  developing  a  building  program,  Gloucester  should 
realize  that  it  has  too  many  small  buildings.  This  means  greater 
cost  of  upkeep  as  well  as  of  initial  cosl .  It  also  means  fewer  modern 
facilities  for  the  children.  The  larger  school  with  more  children 
means  that  the  community  can  afford  to  give  the  children  a  greater 
variety  of  facilities.  For  example,  a  school  of  1,200  pupils  can 
afford  such  facilities  as  an  auditorium,  shops,  gymnasium,  swimming 
pool,  library,  etc.,  whereas  if  the  children  were  housed  in  two  school 
buildings  with  separate  sites,  equipment,  teaching  force,  janitorial 
service,  and  cost  of  upkeep,  the  total  expense  would  obviously  be 
far  greater.  In  other  words,  the  city  has  something  to  learn  from  the 
country  in  the  matter  of  both  the  social  and  financial  advantages  of 
the  consolidated  school. 

Obviously,  a  building  program  should  be  planned  on  the  assump- 
tion that  it  is  the  duty  of  the  public  schools  to  provide  accommoda- 
tions for  all  children  of  school  age.  The  fact  that  a  considerable 
number  of  children  of  school  age  are  not  enrolled  in  the  public 
schools  is  due  at  least  to  a  certain  extent  to  the  fact  that  the  schools 
of  Gloucester  have  not  up  to  the  present  time  provided  either  ade- 
quate seating  accommodations  or  modern  school  facilities  for  the 
children. 


SCHOOL  BUILDING  PROGRAM  FOR  GLOUCESTER,  MASS. 


Public-school  enrollment,  1914-1918;  capacity  of  school  buildings,  number  of 
regular  classrooms,  number  of  classrooms  required. 


Name  of  school. 

Grades. 

Capac- 
ity. 

Enrollment. 

Increase 
or 
decrease. 

Regular  classrooms. 

1913-14 

1917-18 

Num- 
ber re- 
quired. 

Num- 
ber 
avail- 
able. 

Num- 
ber re- 
quired 
over 
those 
avail- 
able. 

Collins 

&-9 
4-9 
1-9 
1-9 
1-9 
4-9 
1-9 
1-6 
1-5 
1-6 
1-3 
1-3 
1-3 
1-3 
1-6 
1-3 
1-2 

400 
480 
320 
240 
320 
240 
240 
280 
320 
160 
240 
240 
160 
160 
80 
80 
40 

484 

530 

324 
282 
247 
220 
93 
326 
362 
156 
238 
170 
138 
107 
75 
64 
39 

493 
468 
299 
260 
252 
210 
187 
294 
323 
128 
237 
185 
134 
130 
44 
79 
35 

9 
162 
125 
122 
5 
110 
194 
32 
139 
128 
il 
'15 
14 
23 
131 
15 
14 

13 
12 
8 
7 
5 
6 
5 
8 
8 
4 
6 
5 
4 
4 
2 

2 

1 

10 
12 

8 
6 
8 
6 
6 
7 
8 
4 
6 
6 
4 
4 
2 
2 
1 

3 
0 
0 
1 
13 
0 
il 
1 
0 
0 
0 
il 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 

Sawyer 

Maplewood       .              .         

Lane 

Eastern  Avenue  

Point  (iTaTnrnar 

Riggs  

Babson                                          .  . 

Hovey 

Brad^treet  

Hildreth 

Mount  Veriion  

Forbes 

Point  Primary  

Leonard          .  . 

Stone  Court 

Rogers  

Total  

4,000 

3,855 

3,758 
_ 
49 
36 
39 
5 

i  97 

100 

100 

0 

Bray 

1-6 
1  6 

61 
51 
46 
39 

112 
115 
13 

134 

Haskell 

Blynman 

1-6 

Special 

Parsons  

Total 

197 

4,052 
603 

119 

3,907 
773 

48 

U45 
170 

=== 

===== 

_==! 

Total  elementary 

===== 

===== 

UiE;h  school 

Grand  total 

4,655 

4,680 

25 

Decrease. 


The  first  step,  then,  in  the  development  of  an  up-to-date  building 
program  for  Gloucester  is  to  eliminate  the  present  old  buildings  and 
erect  a  few  buildings  with  modern  school  equipment  and  facilities. 
To  do  this,  however,  especially  as  Gloucester  has  done  nothing  for 
practically  a  quarter  of  a  century  in  the  matter  of  school  building, 
is  evidently  going  to  involve  considerable  expense  and  thoughtful 
planning.  There  are  two  methods  by  which  an  adequate  school 
building  program  may  be  undertaken. 

The  first  method  would  attempt  to  solve  the  situation  by  the  usual 
procedure  of  adding  classrooms  or  new  buildings  without  changing 
the  traditional  school  organization.  All  children  would  be  expected 
to  be  in  school  seats  at  the  same  time,  and  if  provision  were  made  for 
special  activities,  such  as  shops  or  cooking  rooms,  the  classrooms 
would  remain  vacant  when  such  facilities  were  in  use.  If  such 
special  facilities  were  provided,  therefore,  they  would  have  to  be 
in  addition  to  a  classroom  for  every  class. 


SCHOOL  BUILDING  PROGRAM  FOR  GLOUCESTER,   MASS.  9 

THE  WORK-STUDY-PLAY  PLAN  OF  ORGANIZATION. 

A  second  possible  method  of  solving  the  building  problem  of 
Gloucester  is  what  is  commonly  known  as  the  work-study-play  plan, 
now  in  operation  in  some  30  or  40  cities  in  the  country.  This  plan 
developed  in  an  attempt  to  solve  the  peculiar  school  problems  created 
by  the  modern  city.  It  grew  out  of  a  recognition  of  the  fact  that, 
as  is  the  case  in  Gloucester,  the  growth  of  city  conditions  makes  the 
educational  problem  far  more  difficult  than  formerly;  in  fact,  has 
created  a  new  school  problem.  The  plan  represents  an  attempt  to 
make  it  practicable,  both  administratively  and  financially,  for  school 
administrators  to  provide  not  only  classroom  accommodations  but 
also  such  modern  educational  facilities  as  gymnasiums,  auditoriums, 
shops,  and  laboratories  where  children  may  be  kept  wholesomely 
occupied  in  study  and  work  and  play. 

HOW  THE  PLAN"  WORKS.1 

Briefly,  the  plan  is  this:  A  school  is  divided  into  two  parts,  each 
having  the  same  number  of  classes  and  each  containing  all  the  eight 
or  nine  grades.  The  first  part,  which  we  will  call  the  "A  School/' 
comes  to  school  in  the  morning  at  8.30,  and  goes  to  classrooms  for 
academic  work.  While  this  school  is  in  the  classroom,  it  obviously 
can  not  use  any  of  the  special  facilities ;  therefore  the  other  school — 
"B  School" — goes  to  the  special  activities,  one-third  to  the  audi- 
torium, one-third  to  the  playground,  and  one-third  divided  among 
such  activities  as  the  shops,  laboratories,  drawing  and  music  studios. 
At  the  end  of  one  or  two  periods — that  is,  when  the  first  'group  of 
children  has  remained,  according  to  the  judgment  of  the  school  au- 
thorities, in  school  seats  as  long  as  is  good  for  them  at  one  time — 
the  A  School  goes  to  the  playground,  auditorium,  and  other  special 
facilities,  while  the  B  School  goes  to  the  classroom. 

Under  this  reorganization  on  the  work-study-play  plan,  all  the 
children  would  have  not  only  the  same  amount  of  time  for  reading, 
writing,  arithmetic,  geography,  and  history  as  formerly,  210  minutes, 
but  also  50  minutes  a  day  of  shopwork  every  day  in  the  week  for  a 
third  of  the  year ;  science  every  day  for  a  third  of  the  year ;  and  draw- 
ing or  music  every  day  for  a  third  of  the  year. 

The  following  table  gives  a  possible  program  for  the  A  School. 
There  are  12  classes  in  this  A  School,  which  are  divided  into  3  divi- 
sions of  4  classes  each :  Division  1,  upper  grades ;  division  2,  interme- 
diate grades ;  division  3,  primary  grades. 

1This  description  of  the  work-study-play  plan  is  taken  from  the  author's  discussion 
of  it  in  U.  S.  Bu.  of  Educ.  Bui.,  1919,  No.  68,  p.  34  et  seq. 


10  SCHOOL   BUILDING  PROGRAM   FOR  GLOUCESTER,   MASS. 

The  "A  "  School. 


Regular  activities. 

E 

special  activities 

School 
hours. 

Academic  instruction. 

Auditorium. 

Play  and 

physical 
training. 

Cooking,  shop, 
science,  etc. 

8  30-  9  20 

Arithmetic    Divisions  1,  2,  3  . 

9  20-10  10 

Language  —  Divisions  123 

10  10-11  00 

Division  1     ... 

Division  3... 

Division  2. 

11.  00-12.  00 

i?  oo_  i  oo 

Entire  "A  "  school  at  luncheon. 
Reading    Divisions  123 

1  00-  1  50 

History  and  geography  —  Divisions  1,  2,  3.  . 

1  50-  2  40 

Divi-ion  3 

Division  2    . 

Division  1. 

2  40-  3  30 

Division  2  

Divisions  ... 

Division  1. 

The  "  B  "  ScliooJ. 


Regular  activities. 

Special  activities 

School 
hours. 

Academic  instruction. 

Auditorium. 

Play  and 
physical 
training. 

Cooking,  shop, 
science,  etc. 

8  30-  9  20 

Division  2  

Divisions  

Division  1. 

0  20-10  10 

Division  3    .  . 

Division  2    ... 

Division  1. 

10  10-11  00 

Arithmetic    Divisions  123 

H  00-12  00 

Language  —  Divisions  1,  2,  3  

12.  00-  1.  00 
1  00-  1  50 

Entire  "  B  "  school  at  luncheon. 

Division  1  

Divisions..... 

Division  2. 

1  50-  2  40 

Reading  —  Divisions  123 

2  40-  3  30 

History  and  geography    Divisions  123 

This  program  represents  a  change  in  the  traditional  method  in 
several  important  points.  In  the  first  place,  it  breaks  up  the  custom 
of  having  all  children  in.  classrooms  at  the  same  time  and  letting 
the  classrooms  lie  idle  when  the  children  go  to  the  auditorium,  shops, 
and  playground.  In  other  words,  it  applies  to  the  public  school  the 
principle  on  which  all  other  public  service  institutions  are  run — that 
is,  the  multiple  use  of  all  facilities  all  the  time.  For  example,  it  is 
evident  that  our  transportation  system  is  made  possible  because  of 
the  fact  that  all  people  do  not  wish  to  ride  at  exactly  the  same  time ; 
concerts  and  theaters  are  made  available  to  many  people  because  one 
person  can  use  another's  seat  when  he  does  not  want  to  use  it ;  hotels 
can  accommodate  thousands  of  people  because  they  are  not  run  on 
the  principle  of  reserving  each  room  for  the  exclusive  use  of  a  single 
individual  during  the  whole  year.  On  the  other  hand,  the  public 
school  system  has  been  run  on  the  principle  of  reserving  a  seat 
for  each  child  during  the  whole  year.  All  children  have  to  be  in 
school  seats  from  9  to  12  a.  m.  and  from  1  to  3  p.  m. ;  all  have  to  go 
home  to  lunch  at  the  same  time;  and  at  3  o'clock  all  are  dismissed 
and  turned  out  to  play. 

There  would,  after  all,  seem  to  be  no  good  reason  why  the  prin- 
ciple of  other  public  service  institutions,  i.  e.,  multiple  use  of  facili- 


SCHOOL  BUILDING  PROGRAM  FOR  GLOUCESTER,  MASS.  11 

ties  all  the  time,  should  not  apply  to  the  school,  nor  any  reason  why 
all  children  should  be  in  classrooms  at  the  same  time,  nor  why  the 
special  facilities  should  be  used  only  a  fraction  of  the  day,  provided, 
of  course,  that  the  children  receive  during  the  day  the  required 
amount  of  academic  work.  In  fact,  it  is  difficult  to  see  how  the 
problem  of  providing  enough  classrooms,  or  playgrounds,  or  audi- 
toriums for  the  mass  of  children  is  ever  to  be  met  if  all  children 
have  to  be  in  classrooms  at  the  same  time,  and  if  all  children  have  to 
play  at  once.  Moreover,  there  seems  to  be  no  good  reason  from  an 
educational  standpoint  why  children  should  all  have  to  do  the  same 
thing  at  the  same  time. 

PRINCIPLE    OF    MULTIPLE   USE    MAKES    MODERN    EDUCATIONAL   FACILITIES 
FINANCIALLY    PRACTICABLE. 

Fortunately,  however,  if  the  principle  of  multiple  use  is  applied 
to  public  school  facilities,  it  is  possible  to  provide  not  only  adequate 
classroom  accommodations  but  also  auditoriums,  gymnasiums,  and 
shops  for  the  mass  of  children.  In  fact,  accommodations  may  be 
provided  in  all  facilities,  if  they  are  in  use  constantly  by  alternating 
groups,  at  less  cost  than  regular  classrooms  alone  may  be  provided 
on  the  basis  of  a  reserved  seat  for  every  child.  For  example,  in  a 
24-class  school,  under  the  traditional  plan  24  classrooms  are  needed  in 
addition  to  all  the  other  special  facilities.  Under  the  work-study- 
play  plan  only  12  classrooms  are  needed.  The  classroom,  however, 
is  the  most  expensive  unit  in  the  school,  therefore  since  only  half 
the  usual  number  of  classrooms  is  needed,  i.  e.,  12  classrooms  in  a 
24-class  school,  the  cost  of  the  remainder  is  released  for  all  the  other 
special  facilities. 

FLEXIBILITY  OF  THE  PROGRAM. 

A  program  based  upon  the  multiple  use  of  facilities  not  only  makes 
possible  modern  educational  advantages  for  the  children,  but  it  also 
makes  it  possible  to  have  a  flexible  program.  A  study  of  the  different 
types  of  these  schools  in  different  parts  of  fhe  country  shows  that  it 
is  possible  for  a  community  to  adapt  the  program  to  its  particular 
needs.  For  example,  it  is  possible  to  arrange  to  have  the  school  begin 
at  8.30,  8.45,  or  9  a.  m.,  or  any  other  hour  desired.  Or,  if  the  school 
begins  at  8.30  and  certain  parents  object  to  having  their  children 
leave  for  school  so  early,  it  is  possible  to  put  these  children  in  the 
"B  School,"  which  begins  the  day  with  special  activities;  in  this 
case  the  children  can  omit  the  play  period  from  8.30  to  9.20  and  arrive 
at  school  at  9.20.  Or  again,  many  parents  prefer  to  have  their  chil- 
dren take  special  music  lessons  after  school.  It  often  happens  that 


12  SCHOOL  BUILDING  PROGRAM  FOR  GLOUCESTER,  MASS. 

home  work  or  staying  after  school  interferes  with  these  lessons. 
Under  the  work-study-play  plan  it  is  possible  to  put  such  children  in 
the  "  A  School "  and  let  them  omit  the  play  period  or  the  auditorium 
in  the  afternoon  from  2.40  to  3.30  p.  m.  There  is,  of  course,  no  reason 
why  children  should  not  be  given  credit  for  these  out-of -school  ac- 
tivities if  so  desired.  Again,  a  child  who  is  backward  in  a  special 
subject,  such  as  arithmetic,  and  is  being  held  back  in  a  grade  because 
he  can  not  master  that  subject,  can  double  up  in  arithmetic  for  a 
number  of  weeks  by  omitting  the  auditorium  period  until  he  has 
made  up  the  work  and  is  ready  to  go  on  with  his  grade.  As  for  the 
special  activities,  each  community  and  each  section  of  the  city  can 
have  the  special  facilities  which  the  school  authorities  and  parents 
desire. 

THE  SCHOOL  TAKES  OVER  THE  STREET  TIME  OF  THE  CHILD. 

As  has  been  pointed  out,  one  of  the  most  undesirable  elements  in 
the  life  of  city  children  is  the  street  life  in  which  they  have  hitherto 
spent  so  large  a  part  of  their  time.  The  average  city  school  is  in 
session  about  180  days  in  the  year.  This  means  that  even  though  all 
the  children  attend  the  entire  time,  they  would  still  be  out  of  school 
185  days  in  the  year.  Obviously,  because  of  the  conditions  of  modern 
city  life  it  is  necessary  that  the  school  take  over  some  of  the  time  now 
spent  by  the  child  on  the  city  streets,  especially  the  school  year. 
At  present  if  10  hours  of  the  24  are  allowed  for  sleep,  and  6  for 
meals  and  home  duties,  there  still  remain  8  hours  to  be  accounted 
for.  Even  if  the  children  were  in  school  5  hours  every  day  there 
would  still  be  3  hours  left,  and  as  is  well  known  these  hours  are 
spent  on  the  city  streets  and  not  always  to  the  child's  advantage. 
At  least  one  or  two  of  these  should  be  taken  over  by  the  school,  and 
wholesome  activity  in  work  and  play  provided. 

The  work-study-play  plan  does  this  by  lengthening  the  school  day 
an  hour  or  more  as  each  community  may  desire,  and  by  offering  to 
the  children  the  wholesome  activity  in  shops  and  laboratories  on 
the  playgrounds,  which  is  so  essential  for  them.  It  should  be  borne 
in  mind,  however,  that  this  lengthening  of  the  school  day  does  not 
necessarily  lengthen  the  number  of  teaching  hours  of  any  teacher.  It 
is  necessary  that  she  be  at  the  school  six  hours,  but  she  need  not  teach 
more  than  five  hours. 

How  a  building  program  can  be  worked  out  on  the  basis  of  the 
work-study-play  plan  of  school  organization  will* now  be  considered. 

A    BUILDING   PROGRAM    ON    THE    BASIS    OF    THE    WORK- STUDY-PLAY    PLAN. 

In  the  following  building  program  the  elementary  schools  will  be 
taken  up  first,  and  in  treating  these  it  should  be  remembered  that 


SCHOOL  BUILDING  PROGRAM  FOR  GLOUCESTER,   MASS.  13 

Haskell,  Bray,  Blynman,  and  Parsons  are  omitted.  The  total  num- 
ber of  pupils  in  these  four  schools  is  144  (1917-18).  There  are  two 
ways  of  dealing  with  these  schools.  Either  they  should  reina in  as  they 
are,  or  else  the  pupils  should  be  transported  to  the  consolidated  school 
recommended  under  (1)  below. 

The  first  recommendation  is  that  the  remaining  18  elementary 
schools  should  be  combined  into  6  elementary  school  Buildings  of  the 
modern  type. 

1.  Consolidate  Babson,  Collins,  Forbes*  Rogers,  and  Hovey. — None 
of  these  buildings  have  any  modern  facilities,  such  as  shops,  or  labora- 
tories or  auditoriums  or  gymnasiums,  and  none  have  adequate  play- 
ground space.    It  is  impossible  to  add  the  necessary  rooms  to  these 
buildings  because  of  limitation  of  space.    Moreover,  it  would  be  a 
waste  of  money  to  do  so,  as  the  buildings  are  old  and  in  poor  condi- 
tion.   Collins  was  built  56  years  ago,  in  1864 ;  Babson,  40  years  ago, 
in  1880 ;  Forbes,  52  years  ago,  in  1868 ;  Rogers,  70  years  ago,  in  1850 ; 
Hovey,  24  years  ago,  in  1896. 

All  the  pupils  in  grades  one  to  six  in  these  five  schools  should  be 
consolidated  in  one  modern  school.  According  to  the  enrollment  for 
the  month  of  October,  1919,  the  number  of  pupils  would  then  be  £>60 
in  the  five  schools:  Babson,  279;  Collins,  91;  Hovey,  348;  Forbes, 
107;  Rogers,  35;  total,  860,  or  22  classes. 

Make  this  a  24-class  school.  On  the  work-study-play  plan,  it  would 
then  be  necessary  to  have  a  building  of  12  classrooms,  1  auditorium, 
1  gymnasium,  1  shop  for  girls,  1  shop  for  boys,  1  drawing  room,  1 
nature  study  room — 16  units ;  $256,000. 

2.  Consolidate  Mount  Vernon,  Sawyer,  and  Hildreth. — The  first  six 
grades  of  these  three  schools  should  be  housed  in  one  building,  and 
the  seventh,  eighth,  and  ninth  grades,  now  going  to  Sawyer,  should 
be  sent  to  the  combination  junior-senior  high  school  hereinafter 
recommended.     According  to  the  enrollment  of  October,  1919,  the 
number  in  the  school  would  be  as  follows:  Mount  Vernon,  187; 
Hildreth,  211 ;  Sawyer,  239 ;  total,  637,  or  16  classes. 

Make  this  an  18-class  school,  and  on  the  work-study-play  plan  nine 
classrooms  would  be  needed,  an  auditorium,  gymnasium,  one  shop 
for  girls,  one  shop  for  boys,  one  drawing  room,  one  nature  study 
room.  A  new  building  of  13  units  should  be  put  up.  This  would 
cost  $208,000. 

3.  Consolidate  Point  Primary  and  Pomt  Grammar. — These  build- 
ings are  very  old  and  inadequate  for  school  purposes.     Point  Gram- 
mar was  erected  in  1852  and  Point  Primary  in  1867.     Even  when 
combined,  they  would  make  a  very  small  school;  they  should  be 
combined  in  a  new  building  with  modern  facilities;  at  present  the 
enrollment  is  204  pupils  in  Point  Grammar  and  122  in  Point  Primary, 


14  SCHOOL  BUILDING  PEOGEAM  FOE  GLOUCESTEE,  MASS. 

making  a  total  of  326  pupils,  or  9  classes.  A  10-class  school  should 
be  put  up.  Under  the  plan  this  would  require  five  classrooms,  a 
nature-study  room  and  drawing  room,  a  shop,  an  auditorium,  and 
gymnasium — 8  units.  If  a  permanent  building  of  8  units  were 
erected,  it  would  cost  $128,000. 

4.  Consolidate  Lane  School,  Bradstreet,  Leonard,  and  Riggs. — 
These  are  all  ve,ry  old  buildings,  erected  in  the  time  of  the  district 
schoolhouse,  and  are  utterly  inadequate  for  modern  educational  pur- 
poses.   Lane  was  erected  in  1860,  Bradstreet  in  1850,  Riggs  in  1850, 
and  Leonard  in  1834;  in  other  words,  from  60  to  96  years  ago.     A 
good  modern  school  is  very  much  needed  in  this  neighborhood. 
There  is  a  growing  Finnish  settlement  there,  but  it  is  situated  a  con- 
siderable distance  from  the  center  of  Gloucester.     For  the  sake  of 
both  the  social  as  well  as  the  educational  life  of  that  district,  there 
should  be  a  modern  school  building,  a  combination  elementary  and 
junior  high  school,  with  auditorium,  two  gymnasiums,  shops,  labora- 
tories, etc.    At  present  Lane  School  is  overcrowded,  so  that  one  of 
the  classes  has  to  be  taught  in  the  Finnish  Hall.    The  school  authori- 
ties have  the  opportunity  to  make  the  school  the  social  center  of  the 
district.   And  they  would  find  quick  response  on  the  part  of  the  Finns, 
who  have  strong  social  instincts  and  organizing  ability.    The  enroll- 
ment for  October,  1919,  is  as  follows :  Lane  School,  265 ;  Bradstreet, 
81 ;  Leonard,  26 ;  Riggs,  181 ;  total,  553,  or  16  classes. 

A  building  should  be  erected  to  house  an  18-class  school,  allowing 
for  an  increase  of  4  classes  over  the  present  enrollment.  The  build- 
ing would  need  under  the  work-study-play  plan  9  classrooms,  an  au- 
ditorium, and  a  gymnasium,  1  nature-study  room,  1  drawing  room, 
shop  for  girls,  shop  for  boys,  and  an  additional  science  or  music 
room,  making  14  units  in  all.  This  would  cost  $224,000. 

5.  Consolidate  Maplewood  and  Stone  Court. — Of  course  the  pupils 
in  Maplewood  and  Stone  Court  should  not  be  housed  separately. 
It  would  be  perfectly  possible  to  have  all  the  pupils  in  the  two  schools 
housed  in  Maplewood  School,  but  if  the  people  desire  to  keep  these 
two  schools  separate,  of  course  there  is  no  reason  why  it  should  not 
be  done.    It  should  be  clearly  understood,  however,  that  it  would  cost 
more  to  keep  them  separate,  and  that  it  is  not  possible  to  give  modern 
facilities  to  the  children  under  such  circumstances.    Maplewood  now 
has  204  children,  or  about  8  classes,  in  the  first  six  grades,  and  Stone 
Court  has  67,  making  a  total  of  271,  or  7  classes.     By  making  this 
an  8-class  school,  it  could  easily  be  housed  in  Maplewood.     Four  of 
the  present  8  classrooms  could  be  used  as  classrooms  and  4  for  special 
activities.     A  portable  gymnasium  and  auditorium  could  be  erected  at 
a  cost  of  $5,000. 


SCHOOL  BUILDING    rCOCKAM    FOR  <;;..>'<  K.ATKR,   MA^S."  15 

Summary  of  cost  under 


Number 

of  classes 

provided 

for. 

1.  Consolidation  of  Habson,  Collins,  Jlovey,  Forbes,  Rogers.  new  building  of  16  units.. 
2.  Consolidation  of  Men  nit  Yemen,  Sawyer.  Ililclreth.  new  building  of!3  units  

$256,000 
208,000 

24 
18 

3.  Consolidation  of  Point  Primarv,  Point  Grammar,  now  building  of  X  units 

128,000 

10 

4.  (Consolidation  of  Lane.  Broadstreet,  Leonard.  Eliggs,  new  building  of  14  unita  

224,000 

18 

5.  Consolidation  of  Maplowood  and  Ptone  Court,  one  portable  auditorium  and  one 
gymnasium,  at  $2,500  each  

5  000 

q 

Total... 

821.000 

78 

Under  the  traditional  plan  of  school  organization  the  cost  would 
be  as  follows : 

Nummary  of  cost  under  the  traditional  plan. 


Number  of 

Cost. 

classes 
provided 

for. 

1.  Consolidation  of  Babson,  Collins.  Hovey,  Forbes,  Rogers,  new  building  of  28 

units 

2.  Consolidation  of  Mount  Vernon,  Sawyer,  Hildroth,  new  building  of  22  units.. . 

3.  Consolidation  of  Point  Grammar  and  Point  Primary,  new  building  of  13  units. . 

4.  Consolidation  of  Lane,  Bradstreet,  Leonard,  Riggs,  new  building  of  22  units. . . 

5.  Consolidation  of  Maplewood  and  Stone  Court,  one  portable  auditorium  and 

one  gymnasium  and  four  special  rooms,  at  §2,500,  $2,500,  and  $4,000,  respec- 
tively  


Total.. 


PLANS  FOR  A  COMBINATION  JUNIOR  AND  SENIOR  HIGH  SCHOOL. 

At  the  present  time  there  are  773  pupils  in  the  high  school,  and  1,055 
pupils  in  the  seventh,  eighth,  and  ninth  grades. 

The  present  high  school  is  utterly  inadequate  for  school  pur- 
poses. It  is  badly  congested  and  has  no  modern  school  facilities. 
Because  of  overcrowding  it  has  two  sessions — one  from  8.05  to  12.50 
and  the  other  from  1.05  to  5.20. 

The  building  is  old  and  dark  and  badly  arranged.  It  was  built  32 
years  ago.  It  has  practically  no  modern  equipment.  It  has  rooms 
called  gymnasiums,  chemical  laboratories,  and  sewing  room,  but  they 
are  nothing  but  attic  rooms.  The  sewing  room,  if  found  in  a  factory, 
would  be  condemned  by  law. 

One  of  Gloucester's  greatest  needs  is  a  modern  high  school  and  also 
a  junior  high  school  for  the  seventh,  eighth,  and  ninth  grades. 

It  is  recommended  that  a  combination  junior  and  senior  high  school 
be  erected  on  Beckford  Street,  just  off  Mount  Yernon  Street,  on  the 
brow  of  the  hill,  with  the  773  high-school  and  1,055  junior-high-school 
pupils.  This  would  make  a  school  of  1,788  pupils,  or  45  classes.  A 
building  should  bo  erected  for  a  48-class  school,  thus  allowing  for  a 
growth  of  three  classes,  or  over  120  children. 


16 


SCHG 


Under  the  york-smdy-play  plan  this  would  necessitate  a  buildinj 
of  24  classrooms  and  2  gymnasiums,  2  laboratories,  chemical  an] 
physics,  2  shops  for  girls,  2  shops  for  boys,  a  mechanical  drawing  rooi 
and  another  drawing  room  and  a  music  room,  a  library,  i.  e.,  10  specis 
rooms  and  24  classrooms  or  34  rooms.  This  would  cost  $544,000. 
more  special  facilities  were  desired,  or  smaller  classes,  it  would 
correspondingly  more. 

Under  the  traditional  plan  of  school  organization,  58  units  woi 
be  needed,  and  the  cost  would  be  $928,000. 

SUMMARY. 

Therefore,  under  the  work-study-play  plan  the  cost  of  giving  m< 
ern  schools  to  the  city  of  Gloucester  would  be,  minus  the  cost  of  sil 
$1,365,000.  Under  the  traditional  plan,  it  would  be  $2,297,000. 

It  is  estimated  that  by  eliminating  15  of  these  old  buildings 
recommended  there  would  be  a  yearly  saving  to  the  city  of  aboi 
$50,000. 

CONCLUSION. 

As  was  pointed  out  at  the  beginning  of  this  report,  Gloucester 
about  25  to  75  years  behind  in  its  school  building  program.    In  tl 
meantime  social,  industrial,  and  educational  conditions  have  change 
greatly,  and  it  is  now  a  serious  menace  to  the  welfare  of  the  child] 
of  Gloucester  and  its  coming  citizenship  that  modern  school  f  aciliti< 
are  not  provided.    Moreover,  the  people  of  Gloucester  probably 
not  realize  that  by  failing  to  provide  modern  buildings  and  equi] 
ment  they  are  asking  the  school  authorities  to  accomplish  an  alm< 
impossible  task.    There  is  no  question  but  that  Gloucester  will  wai 
to  give  the  best  possible  education  to  its  children  once  it  realis 
the  deplorable  conditions  which  now  obtain  in  the  schools — conditioi 
which  all  the  zeal  and  intelligence  and  progressive  spirit  of  the  teacl 
ing  force  can  not  overcome;  conditions  which  are  a  menace  to 
health  and  strength  of  the  coming  citizenship  of  Gloucester. 

o 


Gajloid  I'.ros. 
Makers 

Syracuse,  N.  V. 
"  PAT.  JAM.  2 1,1908 


448740 


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